Sligo Rovers are back at The Showgrounds and hoping to make it three wins on the spin on Churchill Road when Shelbourne come to visit on Saturday night (7.45pm)

Shelbourne have got the better of Rovers on both occasions so far this season with 1-0 and 2-1 wins respectively in April and May.

Rovers are in good form and unbeaten in four matches since Russell has taken over (Interim versus Derry City and UCD).

Shelbourne come into the game having drawn with Dundalk at Tolka Park last Friday night and Rovers had a scoreless game themselves away to Drogheda United at the same time.

Manager Russell expects another tough encounter:

‘’There was a lot of positives to take from our match against Drogheda last week. I felt we controlled the game for large parts and we were defensively very secure. We know there are areas where we can improve and this week has allowed us to work more on our principles of play.

Tomorrow night, we welcome Shelbourne to The Showgrounds who have beaten us twice this year. I know our players are relishing the challenge ahead.

It’s another home game for us in front of our fans so we’re hoping for a big performance’’.

In team news, Rovers should have a fully fit squad to choose from as Nando Pijnaker and Greg Bolger have recovered from illness and Garry Buckley should return from a muscle injury. Frank Liivak has joined the club this week and will await international clearance before knowing if he can participate.

The club wish to announce that ticket sales for our home European tie with Bala Town will be on sale inside the ground as well as Annual Draw tickets for our upcoming 2022 draw.

Gates open from 6.30pm.

The club also wish to thank supporters for their assistance at our last home fixture where no pyro was used and no flares let off which we appealed for help with. Thankfully, this is the first time the club were not issued with any fines resulting from the use of flares at The Showgrounds this season.

The game is also live on LOI TV with Jessica Farry and Alan Keane on commentary.

Ocean FM will also have live commentary on the night.

Bohemian FC get set to welcome Sligo Rovers to Dalymount Park for the first time on Saturday evening, 6pm, as the Women’s National League returns after a mid-season break.

The Dublin club will be eager to build on the form that saw them draw with Galway, beat Peamount and draw with DLR Waves while Sligo Rovers will be determined to put a five-goal reversal last-time-out against Peamount behind them.

Sligo Rovers manager Steve Feeney summed up the impact of conceding five goals without reply to a resurgent Peamount Utd side when he suggested that the players were disappointed not to have taken something from the game.

“We have improved to a certain standard and we now have to push on again, we have to come back stronger after the break,” commented Feeney in the aftermath of the reversal.

“If someone had told us that we would be in this position after 14 games into our inaugural season, playing Peamount at home and going out with the expectation of getting a result, it just demonstrates how much progress the team has made.

“The mid-season break is welcome, we can get everyone refreshed again and ready to go to Dalymount for the next game against Bohemians,” he added.

Two goals from Sinead Taylor and one from Chloe Darby gave Bohemian FC the points in a 3-1 victory at the Showgrounds last March and the formbook suggests that on home turf, the Dublin women will be a difficult proposition.

The immediate goal for Bohemian FC manager Sean Byrne and his players is to take another three points as they currently sit in eighth position two points adrift of Sligo Rovers.

Of concern for the Bohs boss will be the fact that they failed to score against DLR Waves in a game of few chances.

However, the loss of striker and captain, Sinead Taylor after just 20 minutes was a major setback and manager Byrne will be looking for a more fluent performance this time around.

The Sligo Rovers players have demonstrated an ability to bounce back and they will be determined to hold on to seventh place and build on what has been an impressive first-half of the season for the newest team in the WNL.

LAST TIME

Sligo Rovers 1, Bohemian FC 3

TEAMS

Sligo Rovers – Kristen Sample; Leah Kelly, Emma Hansberry, Orna O’Dowd, Amy Hyndman, Gemma McGuinness, Lauren Boles, Emma Doherty, Amy Roddy, Fiona Doherty, Paula McGrory.

Subs – Ruth Monaghan for O’Dowd, Aoife Brennan for McGrory both half-time, Kerri O’Hara for Hyndman, Katie Melly for F Doherty both 68 mins, Helen Monaghan for Kelly 74m, 

Bohemian FC – Rachael Kelly; Abbie Brophy, Katie Burdis, Lisa Murphy, Ciara Maher, Katie Lovely, Chloe Darby, Erica Burke, Kira Bates-Crosbie, Fiona Ryan, Sinead Taylor. 

Subs – Isobel Finnegan for Burdis and Ann Marie Byrne for Ryan both 60 mins, Bronagh Kae for Bates-Crosbie 83m.

Our Academy go into July with five games this weekend between Saturday and Sunday.

Our Under 14 boys get their League season underway with a game away to Klub Kildare in Tougher at 1pm. The sides recently met in the SETU Cup in Waterford where Rovers won the game.

Our Under 15 side are in action away to Bray Wanderers on Sunday at Ballychorus at 3.30pm. The lads drew 2-2 with Athlone Town last time out.

Our Under 17 Men’s team face Cavan/Monaghan in the cup in Cootehill at 2pm on Saturday afternoon. The sides have met twice in the league so far in 2022 with Rovers winning one and drawing the other.

Our Women’s Under 17s are in action away to Athlone Town, also on Saturday at 3.30pm at Lissywoolen. The sides played out a scoreless draw already this year.

On Sunday our Under 19 men host Shamrock Rovers at 2pm at Sean Fallon Centre. The lads won 2-1 against Treaty United on Wednesday night in the cup thanks to Josh Mulrennan’s free kick and Kailin Barlow’s late penalty to secure a spot in the next round.

Our Women’s Under 19 side have no game this weekend however many of the squad will be part of Steve Feeney’s senior Womens squad against Bohs on Saturday night in Dalymount Park.

Our SSE Airtricity League match against UCD at The Showgrounds, originally scheduled for Sunday July 16th has been moved to Sunday July 17th at 6pm.

This is due to our Europa Conference League game with Bala Town on Thursday July 14th at The Showgrounds.

It has been another season of great progress for Lusail FC from Qatar and in particular their Technical Director and former Bit O’ Red hero Ciaran Kelly as they finished 3^rd in the Qatari Second Division and are now on the verge of being fully accredited as a professional club by the Qatar FA which would mean they would be entitled to centralised funding:

“The season is just over here, we are playing in the Qatari Second Division and finished 3^rd in the League which is a great achievement seeing as we are only allowed by the league to play amateur status players. Other clubs in the League are allowed to sign up to 5 professional players – one from the Middle East, one from Asia and three from the rest of the World. For us to be able to do the same you have to meet the criteria that has been laid down by the Qatar Football Association and be operating as a club in the second division for over 3 years and then to be accredited by them and received funding from them towards the signing of players and the hiring of staff. In that respect it is very like the centralised system used in the MLS in America. We have gone from 7^th to 5^th to 3^rd which is a great achievement for all involved given we no revenue from gate receipts so are entirely reliant on out academy structure and our sponsors. Technically we wouldn’t have been able to get promoted due to our status but we still ended up only three points off 2^nd place. We finished very strong considering there was a transition for the players during the season when our new head coach came in. We appointed Fabio Cesar who is an ex Qatari international with a Brazilian background. He came in initially to do some support work with our staff and then when the role came up, he was offered it and accepted the job and has done really well. To finish how we did and have the run of games where we came so close to finishing second was a huge achievement.”

In keeping with Kelly’s proud Cup final tradition Lusail also reached the final of the Qatar FA Cup where they were beaten by top flight side Al-Arabi but for Kelly it was another milestone in their continuing progression as a club:

“We also reached the final of the Qatar FA Cup. The cup is run a little different here. There are two competitions the Amir Cup and then the FA Cup. The FA Cup is for all of the teams not playing in the Asian Champions League. We finished top of our group and then won our quarter-final and semi-final and got to the final against Al-Arabi who play in the top flight, the Qatar Stars League. They are a good side have some high profile players in their side including Icelandic international Aron Gunnarsson who used to play for Cardiff City and Gabon international Aaron Boupendza. You would be frightened if you knew his salary which is $7million dollars a year and he was the difference between the two sides. We were 2-0 down after 14/15 minutes but came back to make a game of it and ended up losing 3-2. The age profile of our side is 23 years old and because of our status and budget we have to look to sign young players who we can develop and move on. We look to see that we have what we are looking for in terms of desire and passion and that they want to use the club as a platform to kick-on in their career. We have to look to develop players for now and for the future and to be winning games. And then creates an issue in its own right in that our players and staff attract the attention of other clubs in the League who would have bigger budgets. That creates a headache for us and adds to all the work that goes on in the off season. Currently the club is in discussions with the QFA about our status for next season and if we are accredited then that will be life changing.”

The club is continuing to grow at a rapid pace and Kelly is keen to continue that growth through strong community programmes and recently their academy was visited by former England international David Beckham:

“This club started in 2014 as a group of ex pats getting together to train on a Tuesday and then play a game on the Saturday in the amateur leagues so nearly like a Castlebar Celtic. Then all of a sudden few years later look how far we have come. I joined as Head Coach in 2017 and then in 2019 we won the Qatar Amateur League to get into the Second Division where we have been since. We have to serve our 3 years to get professional status and to think how much the club has changed in such a short period and now is a huge structure. We run it on a business model which is no different to that of any other club in the World and I draw on the experience of having worked with good people in the past and of making sure we have strong community programmes. We work with ‘Generation Amazing’ who have just won the ‘Football For All’ award from the QFA and through this scheme they arranged for David Beckham to come and visit our academy. Our community scheme is called A-Fereej which translates as village in Arabic and was the closest word we could get to community. We have set up youth leagues and currently are in the midst of a 5 week youth tournament which has over 700 players taking part from ages 7 up to 17 and we have linked in with Pepsi and Aquafina for that. We have gone full cycle in terms of setting up a pathway for players. We have kids starting with us as young as 3 and then all the way to the first team and we have to close that gap so this season we introduced a second team that are playing in the Qatar Amateur League and they actually won the League this season.”

Having experienced the lows and highs in his playing career especially during his  spells with Sligo Rovers, Kelly feel that all of this has given him great examples to draw from as he looks to help Lusail get to the next level:

“I suppose now that I look back at that time period as some of the happiest memories of my life and there times every day when I draw on certain experiences that I had and use that in my decision making with Lusail. I think of scenarios that happened at the clubs I was involved with and what might have went right or what went wrong. For me one of the main things I took from my time with Sligo Rovers is to surround yourself with the best people who want the best for your club and that includes staff, players, committee members. That can be a difficult process to get right but it is all about togetherness. One of the posters we had up in the dressing room in the Showgrounds was ‘Together we are Stronger’ and we use that as a hashtag here. You have to be like a family and that’s what we had in Sligo, we were one big family from the groundsman to the bus driver to the supporters, we were all in it together. At that time we all wanted to win and to bring success to the club. The hurt of losing the 2009 FAI Cup Final drove us one to win first the EA Sports Cup in 2010 and then when we had won that we believed we could win further and that period ran until 2014.”

When asked would he consider a return to Ireland, Kelly admits that is a difficult question to answer as he does keep in touch with what is happened in the League but that ultimately he is happy where is at career wise:

“That’s a difficult question and I don’t know the answer. An hour can be a long time in football and I know that in this industry you nearly have to take it one day at a time. But I am happy here and am surrounded by good people who have given me a platform to grow the club and to be put in the right people to move this club forward. This has been a long process since 2017 but it has been an enjoyable one. And we couldn’t have done it with the support of everyone involved with the club and our partners. Around 3 years ago I did have the opportunity to take over as head coach of the first team here and the players were pushing for me to take over and I was chomping at the bit as I believed I could do a good job. But the President and Vice President said that I could never have that job as if I took it then they would lose me from my current role which was reassuring to hear as it showed that they believed in the work I was doing. In face recently the President of the club referred to me at ‘the brain’! That said I do stay in contact with the goings on in the League of Ireland and see that a lot of young managers and coaches are being given opportunities so part of me is like wow am I missing that window to go and have a go. But I have to be real and look at where I am. I am lucky to have a fantastic work/life balance and am enjoying what I am doing.”

By Keith O’ Dwyer

Sligo Rovers Womens team will play our first ever Women’s FAI Cup match on Saturday July 9th at 3pm at The Showgrounds.

The game sees Rovers welcome Cork side Douglas Hall in a first ever meeting of the sides.

The winners of the tie will progress to the quarter finals. The game must be finished on the day after 90 minutes or via extra time or penalties.

The game will be streamed live on LOI TV and admission is €5 on the day.

Gates open from 2pm.

We can confirm the club has just obtained an additional allocation of tickets to our upcoming Europa Conference League First Qualifying Round First Leg with Bala Town on Thursday July 7th at Park Hall Stadium. (7pm)

We have decided to purchase these tickets from Bala Town in order to be able to have a sale of tickets at The Showgrounds.

In order to give supporters enough time to prepare for the ticket sales, we will begin sales from Thursday (June 30th) at 4pm at The Showgrounds merchandise shop inside the ground. Car parking will be available as the club’s astro turf car park. Tickets for the home fixture will also be available as well as club merchandise.

In the interest of fairness, there is strictly NO holding of tickets and NO phone sales with supporters allowed a maximum of TWO tickets per person.

Please refrain from contacting the offices with regards these types requests as they will not be entertained.

Once tickets are sold out, there is expected to be no further allocation.

Club CEO Colin Feehily:

‘We are delighted to have come to an agreement with our friends at Bala Town to secure an additional amount of tickets which we have purchased from them in order to be able to sell them in Sligo to avoid any supporters having issues online.

We ask supporters to please respect the sale times, which starts on Thursday at 4pm at The Showgrounds Merchandise shop.

We want to thank Bala Town and their dedicated staff for their continued efforts in helping us obtain the most amount of tickets as possible. The club have given us more tickets than UEFA regulations expect them to and for that we are grateful.”

Ticket sales will cease on Thursday at 7pm. If tickets remain after this time, which is unlikely, they will be on sale from Friday morning at 10am at The Showgrounds front office. 

Adult tickets are priced at €17.50 (£15)

Our Academy teams were all in action over the weekend starting off on Friday night when our Under 15 side travelled to take on Athlone Town at 7.30pm in Lissywoolen.

Goals from James Lavin and Conor Langan meant Rovers drew 2-2 against the Midlanders to take a point back to Sligo.

Saturday saw both Under 17 teams in action at The Sean Fallon Centre. Our Under 17 girls team won 1-0 against Cork City thanks to Heather O’ Sullivan’s strike whereas our Men’s side lost 3-1 to Bohs, with Luke Mavrak on target.

Sunday was another busy day with three games down for decision.
Our Under 14’s played a friendly at home to Bohs, the victors scoring four goals in the last 25 minutes to seal a 4-0 win.

Declan Boyle’s Under 19 Men’s side drew 2-2 against Shelbourne in Dublin, Kailin Barlow with a brace to continue his good form.

Pixie O’ Hara’s goal wasn’t enough as our Under 19 Womens team lost 3-1 to Athlone Town at home.

Sligo Rovers travelled to Head in The Game Park on Friday night to take on Drogheda United in the third meeting of the team this season.

Rovers had the upper hand so far, winning both games in Drogheda and Sligo respectively.

It wasn’t exactly a great advertisement for Summer Football as dark clouds and a cool air surrounded the ground on a cold June evening.

Manager John Russell had to plan without Garry Buckley who picked up a minor knock in last week’s win over Finn Harps and due Nando Pijnaker and Greg Bolger were both ill and not able to travel.

Colm Horgan replaced Buckley in the starting XI with Adam McDonnell coming in to captain the team ahead of David Cawley who was on the bench.

Both sides looked to get in on goal in the opening 15 minutes with the hosts forcing a couple of corners which came to nothing and Aidan Keena proving a threat for The Drogs backline with a tempting cross from the left which just missed Max Mata before the Mullingar man almost got in himself but couldn’t force a shot on goal after knocking the ball past ‘keeper Colin McCabe.

A flurry of corners for Rovers before half time saw us press for an opening goal but they never lead to any clear cut chances and the game was tied at the break.

One of the best chances of the game fell to Will Fitzgerald on 53 minutes. The ball broke in his favour around 40 yards from goal and he dribbled toward goal and just as he was about to shoot, defender Luke Heeney got back to stop him in front of goal. There were strong claims for a penalty but referee Neil Doyle waved them away.

Niall Morahan picked up a knock to the head after 65 minutes and was replaced by David Cawley in Rovers’ first change. Cillian Heaney was also introduced for Karl O’ Sullivan a few moments later.

Max Mata was proving a threat for Rovers, finding himself in good positions but unable to steer two headers on goal in the latter stages.

Drogheda had one or two half chances themselves, substitute Darragh Markey’s free kick was headed straight at Edward McGinty in Rovers’ goal and Adam Foley shot wide inside the area as the game headed towards stoppage time.

Five minutes was added on by the referee and right at the end of that Rovers had the best chance of the game. Cillian Heaney broke forward on the right and found David Cawley in the middle who switched the play to the overlapping Paddy Kirk on the left. His dangerous cross went all the way out the back to Will Fitzgerald whos effort was deflected wide for a corner.

Shane Blaney’s header went wide from the resulting set piece and Rovers must make do with a share of the spoils.

Next up is a home game with Shelbourne next Saturday night at 7.45pm at The Showgrounds.

All six teams are in action over the weekend with four home games and two away games down for decision.

First up tonight, our Under 15’s take on Athlone Town at Lissywoolen at 7.30pm.

Tomorrow sees both Under 17 sides in action at The Sean Fallon Centre. At 1pm our Men’s team host Bohemian FC which is followed by a meeting of our Women’s team and Cork City. Both games are free to watch and all support is welcome.

Sunday is another busy day as our Under 14’s get us started with a 12 Noon friendly at home to Bohemian FC at The Sean Fallon Centre. They have had a busy week this week with five games in total between Tuesday and Thursday as they took part in the first ever SETU Cup in Waterford.

The lads were defeated by Blackburn Rovers in group game one but reacted well and defeated Kerry and Klub Kildare to make it through to the semi-finals where they lost our to UCD on penalties after a 2-2 draw. Third 3rd place play off went our way however as we defeated North West neighbours Finn Harps 2-0 on Thursday evening.

Also on Sunday, our Under 19 Men’s team travel to AUL Complex to play Shelbourne from 1pm and our Women’s team host Athlone Town at 2pm, again at Sean Fallon Centre.

Best of luck to all involved.